Vancouver, BC – go2HR – BC’s tourism human resource association – relaunched the revitalized SuperHost, including new and refreshed courses, at Science World on May 31, 2018. The event honoured the historical roots of the program, bringing back beloved Expo 86 mascot “Expo Ernie” to celebrate the relaunch!

SuperHost was originally launched in 1985 in preparation for Expo 86 in British Columbia. Since then, SuperHost has become the standard for customer service excellence in BC and an internationally recognized leader in training for the tourism industry. Over the last 30 years, it was operated and managed by the BC Government through its provincial destination marketing organization, Destination British Columbia and its predecessor, Tourism British Columbia. Before the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, the program expanded its course offerings and was rebranded as WorldHost Training Services. Early in 2017, Destination BC transferred WorldHost over to go2HR.

“Customer service has always been at the core of our brand promise, strengthened by every touch point a traveller encounters through their visit. Whether it’s a hotel experience, a chat at a visitor centre, or a comment from a travel trade partner, it’s delivered by the hundreds of thousands of tourism and hospitality employees in the province,” says Grant Mackay, Vice President, Destination Management at Destination BC. “We have now entrusted our 30-year legacy of customer service training to our industry tourism HR partner.”

Walt Judas, CEO of Tourism Industry Association of BC, notes the importance of tourism as an economic driver in BC, “BC Tourism Matters, and SuperHost matters too as the success of our industry relies on local tourism products combined with positive customer service experiences.”

Significant changes have been made to SuperHost courses and delivery options, as announced by Arlene Keis, CEO of go2HR. “Today we are officially launching the online version of Foundations of Service Quality. This fundamentals course focuses on the value of customer experience to the business and includes new concepts such as Net Promotor Score, the impact of social media and its influence on customer expectations and experiences.”

Foundations of Service Quality

The first new course, Foundations of Service Quality, introduces the principles of providing a quality service experience in the workplace, highlighting the importance of exceptional customer service. Students learn about workplace communication, problem solving, customer and employer expectations, and more. Foundations of Service Quality is available in both classroom and online format.

Upcoming Courses in the SuperHost Suite

In addition to Foundations of Service Quality, SuperHost is also introducing Service for All and Destination Ambassador, available later in 2018.

For More Information

To learn more about the program, how to become a SuperHost Certified Instructor or Training Provider, where public classroom courses are available and to access the online course, visit SuperHost.ca.

About go2HR

go2HR is BC’s tourism human resource association, responsible for coordinating the BC Tourism Labour Market Strategy. go2HR provides tourism employers with resources in the area of recruitment and retention, as well as training and certification programs to develop relevant skills for prospective and current tourism and hospitality employees.